The 57th GST Council meeting on 7 October in New Delhi is set to focus on expanding input tax credit mechanisms, improving compliance, and providing targeted relief for small businesses and exporters amid efforts to simplify tax procedures and unlock credit blockages.
The 57th GST Council meeting, chaired by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, is set for 7 October in New Delhi after being pushed back from an earlier September date, according to reporting by Zee Business and tax industry updates circulated ahead of the session. The meeting is expected to focus less on new rates and more on compliance, refunds and input tax credit rules, even as market participants look for wider relief across sectors ranging from telecoms and manufacturing to fast-moving consumer goods and pharmaceuticals.
Among the most closely watched proposals is an expansion of input tax credit, or ITC, the mechanism that allows businesses to offset the tax they pay on purchases against the tax they collect on sales. Zee Business said sources expect the council to consider bringing telecom towers and pipelines into the ITC framework, a change that would follow the Supreme Court’s view that telecom towers can be treated as movable plant and machinery. The report also said the council may look at extending credit to certain expired or discarded FMCG and pharmaceutical products, as well as to employee insurance, vehicles and related running costs, subject to final conditions.
Compliance and enforcement changes are also likely to be in focus. According to Zee Business, officials could lose the power to arrest under GST 2.0, with any custodial action instead requiring court authorisation. The same report said the council may raise the threshold for prosecution against companies, a move that would push more low-value disputes into the civil recovery system rather than criminal proceedings. Other possible changes include easing treatment of tax paid on plant and machinery, which could support cash flow for capital-intensive businesses, and creating a more generous refund mechanism for smaller claims.
Small firms and exporters may also see targeted relief if the reported proposals are adopted. Zee Business said the council is considering a quarterly payment and annual return facility for businesses that sell only to end consumers, which would go beyond the current QRMP arrangement. It also reported that cases involving amounts below Rs 10,000 may be spared notices, while older small refund balances could become claimable. Another proposal under discussion would treat sales through foreign branches, and work done in India on goods owned by foreign clients, as exports, which would give businesses clearer tax treatment for cross-border operations.
The broader theme, according to tax commentators quoted in the lead-up to the meeting, is simplification rather than a sweeping rate overhaul. That fits with separate industry reports from Mint-linked summaries and tax advisory sites, which said the 57th meeting was rescheduled from 12 September because of a clash with the BRICS summit and that the agenda is expected to centre on ITC, refunds and registration processes. If the council backs even part of the reported package, it could ease compliance for Indian firms while unlocking blocked credit in sectors where GST treatment has long been contested.
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